Since 2003... the 11th highest ranked art blog on the planet! And with over SEVEN million visitors, F. Lennox Campello's art news, information, gallery openings, commentary, criticism, happenings, opportunities, and everything associated with the global visual arts scene with a special focus on the Greater Washington, DC area.
In that way, Art for Everybody makes the implicit argument that you can either make art that will win over the establishment or that will win over the greater population, but you can’t make both...
Read the most excellent ‘A modern-day Greek tragedy’: the life and death of artist Thomas Kinkade by Veronica Esposito here.
Suzanne Yurdin, me, and Steve Wanna posing in front of the booth - missing from pic is the amazing Jeannette Herrera, who was helping out early in the week.
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| Suzanne Yurdin, Lenny Campello and Steve Wanna at the 2025 Affordable Art Fair NYC |
The spectacular new work by Jeannette Herrera in full splendor at the Affordable Art Fair New York!
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| Jeannette Herrera art at Affordable Art Fair NYC |
01:30 AM - Wide awake on my bed, thinking about the always dicey unload operations when we arrive at the Metropolitan Pavilion in NYC later in the morning.
04:00 AM - Out of bed, teeth brushed, coffee made and awaiting for Steve Wanna to arrive.
04:20 AM - Steve Wanna arrives, we load his artwork into my van - somehow it fits.
04:35 AM - We depart and head north on I-95 to NYC.
06:30 AM - Speed camera flashes somewhere in Delaware.
07:45 AM - We're within 14 miles of the Holland Tunnel - about 90 minutes later we enter NYC.
09:15AM - We arrive at the Met Pavilion, check in and then meet artist Jeannette Herrera and her friend Abby, who are going to help us unload.
10:00 AM - Art is unloaded into the booth and the hanging process begins as the empty boxes are re-loaded into the van
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| Steve Wanna installing at Alida Anderson Art Projects' booth at the Affordable Art Fair NY |
10:30 AM - I drive and leave van in parking garage on 19th Street and walk back to Met Pavilion to continue hanging the work.
3:00 PM - I notice that artist Suzanne Yurdin's work is not lit properly and spring an extra light at $105!
4:15 PM - I walk over to the Chelsea International Hostel, check in and go to my room, unpack and walk out to the shared bathroom, shower and shave, get dressed and walk back to the fair.
5:00 PM - VIP Night starts and the aisleas are packed!
10:00 PM - Head back to the hostel - over 2300 people attended the VIP night... multiple sales of Bisque pieces and a nice painting by Anne Cherubim.
11:00 PM - Out for the night.
The VIP opening is in about 30 minutes... huge line outside at the 2025 Affordable Art Fair NYC in the Metropolitan Pavilion in Chelsea!
The halcyon years of the Washington Color School, over half a century ago, still represent the deepest fine arts footprint ever made by our (then) regional artists, elevating most of them to (now) a global presence.
There's currently a terrific show at Hemphill showcasing the works of two immensely talented artists: Leon Berkowitz and Wayson Jones.
Jones' work first came to my attention via my good friend Lou Stovall, when Stovall selected Jones in 2010 for the October Members Show in Hillyer Art Space.
I've been following Jones' work for many years, and in 2018 I wrote about his participation in that year's Superfine Art Fair and highlighted the "refined works of Wayson R. Jones, whose technique and presentation just keeps getting better and sharper! This is a key DMV artist deserving of more attention by the curatorial cabal of our area." And two years ago I was in the audience when Jones, who in 2022 was Montgomery College’s Visual and Performing Arts Department's Artist in Residence, presented a really good Artist Talk one September day.
It has been said that "Leon was a character, a character that stood alone..."
In "An Interview with Gene Davis" by Walter Hopps, we learn that the The Washington Color School "members" did not feel much camaraderie, with each other, and perhaps even a sense of jealousy? George Hemphill notes that:
There are stories of Davis' extreme annoyance at the Corcoran students gathering in groups and sitting before Berkowitz's paintings while leaving his work absent of attention. Berkowitz's paintings sold as well, possibly better than others. His peers' work may garner greater investment returns today, but none have as much universal and growing appeal.
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| Leon Berkowitz (Photo by Paul Feinberg - Courtesy of Hemphill) |
This is an important show which deserves attention not only because of the historical importance of Berkowitz, but also and equally important, a new and powerful footprint by a superbly talented contemporary artist who clearly represents a 21st century extension of those halcyon days.
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| Leon Berkowitz in his studio (Photo by Paul Feinberg - Courtesy of Hemphill) |
The show runs through April 26, 2025.
H E M P H I L L
434 K Street NW
Washington DC 20001
202.234.5601
